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Carlson Named to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List
10/28/2022 11:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Utah center Branden Carlson was named to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List.
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Utah center Branden Carlson was named to the 2023 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame announced on Friday.
The Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award recognizes the top centers in men's college basketball and is in its ninth year of existence. The watch list will be narrowed down to 10 in late January and then to paired down to five finalists in late February before being presented to Abdul-Jabbar and the selection committee. Presentation details will be announced at a later date.
Fan voting for the award also opens up so that fans can vote for their favorite player in each of the three rounds. For more information, please visit www.hoophallawards.com.
The 7-footer was 1-of-20 named in the first watch list of the year and 1-of-4 from the Pac-12. Others from the Conference of Champions include, Adem Bona (UCLA), Kel'el Ware (Oregon) and Oumar Ballo (Arizona). Carlson was the lone player that was named Preseason All-Pac-12 First-Team while Ballo and Ware earned honorable mentions. The Pac-12 leads the Power 6 conferences with four on the watch list while the rest each have three apiece and Conference USA with one.
The South Jordan, Utah, product started in 23-of-24 games he played in last season averaging 13.6 points and 6.0 rebounds for the Utes. His 13.6 points per game was good for the team lead and 11th overall in the Pac-12 while his 6.0 boards per game was good for 13th in the Conference of Champions.
Carlson opened his junior campaign in 2021-22 with six-straight games of double-digits points – including a double-double in the opener with 14 points and 10 boards against Abilene Christian. He scored 15 points with 13 rebounds in the championship game at the Sunshine Slam Tournament to give Utah the tournament crown and earn tournament MVP honors as well.
He finished the year scoring double-digit points in nine of the 10 final games in the regular-season – including a career-high 25 points on 11 rebounds at Colorado. Meanwhile, he started in 14-of-15 league games he played in and tallied a team-best 16 blocks. For his efforts, Carlson was named Second-Team All-Pac-12 last season – making it the 10th-straight season that Utah has had a player earn All-Pac-12 honors since joining the league in 2011-12.
The Runnin' Utes have strong ties to the award with former Consensus Second-Team All-American Jakob Poeltl winning the award back in 2016 – its second year of existence. Poeltl, who was the second of three-consecutive players from Utah to be drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft in 2016 (ninth overall by the San Antonio Spurs), led the Runnin' Utes to 27 wins and a second-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2015-16. He led the team in scoring (17.2ppg), rebounding (9.1rpg), field-goal percentage (.646) and blocked shots (56) that year while his 620 points that season made him the first Utah player to eclipse 600 points in a single-season since Andrew Bogut tallied 715 points during the 2004-05 campaign.
UP NEXT
Runnin' Utes fans can get a sneak peek of the 2022-23 Utah men's basketball team next Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 6 p.m. (MT) inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center when Utah welcome in Westminster as part of its Night with the Runnin' Utes. Krista Blunk and former Utah assistant coach Joe Craves will guide fans throughout the game on Pac-12 Networks.
Utah will then open its season on Monday, Nov. 7, against Long Island with a 9 p.m. (MT) tip-off on Pac-12 Networks. Blunk will have the call while Mary Murphy serves as the in-game analyst between the Utes and Sharks.
SEASON TICKETS
Fans can purchase season tickets for the 2022-23 season now by calling the Utah Ticket Office at 801-581-8849 or purchase online. Fans with questions regarding season tickets that would like to have a ticketing representative call them can do so by filling out a form online.
For the latest news and information on the Runnin' Utes men's basketball program, fans can stay connected online at www.UtahUtes.com and on social media by following @UtahMBB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
The Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award recognizes the top centers in men's college basketball and is in its ninth year of existence. The watch list will be narrowed down to 10 in late January and then to paired down to five finalists in late February before being presented to Abdul-Jabbar and the selection committee. Presentation details will be announced at a later date.
Fan voting for the award also opens up so that fans can vote for their favorite player in each of the three rounds. For more information, please visit www.hoophallawards.com.
The 7-footer was 1-of-20 named in the first watch list of the year and 1-of-4 from the Pac-12. Others from the Conference of Champions include, Adem Bona (UCLA), Kel'el Ware (Oregon) and Oumar Ballo (Arizona). Carlson was the lone player that was named Preseason All-Pac-12 First-Team while Ballo and Ware earned honorable mentions. The Pac-12 leads the Power 6 conferences with four on the watch list while the rest each have three apiece and Conference USA with one.
The South Jordan, Utah, product started in 23-of-24 games he played in last season averaging 13.6 points and 6.0 rebounds for the Utes. His 13.6 points per game was good for the team lead and 11th overall in the Pac-12 while his 6.0 boards per game was good for 13th in the Conference of Champions.
Carlson opened his junior campaign in 2021-22 with six-straight games of double-digits points – including a double-double in the opener with 14 points and 10 boards against Abilene Christian. He scored 15 points with 13 rebounds in the championship game at the Sunshine Slam Tournament to give Utah the tournament crown and earn tournament MVP honors as well.
He finished the year scoring double-digit points in nine of the 10 final games in the regular-season – including a career-high 25 points on 11 rebounds at Colorado. Meanwhile, he started in 14-of-15 league games he played in and tallied a team-best 16 blocks. For his efforts, Carlson was named Second-Team All-Pac-12 last season – making it the 10th-straight season that Utah has had a player earn All-Pac-12 honors since joining the league in 2011-12.
The Runnin' Utes have strong ties to the award with former Consensus Second-Team All-American Jakob Poeltl winning the award back in 2016 – its second year of existence. Poeltl, who was the second of three-consecutive players from Utah to be drafted in the first round of the NBA Draft in 2016 (ninth overall by the San Antonio Spurs), led the Runnin' Utes to 27 wins and a second-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2015-16. He led the team in scoring (17.2ppg), rebounding (9.1rpg), field-goal percentage (.646) and blocked shots (56) that year while his 620 points that season made him the first Utah player to eclipse 600 points in a single-season since Andrew Bogut tallied 715 points during the 2004-05 campaign.
UP NEXT
Runnin' Utes fans can get a sneak peek of the 2022-23 Utah men's basketball team next Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 6 p.m. (MT) inside the Jon M. Huntsman Center when Utah welcome in Westminster as part of its Night with the Runnin' Utes. Krista Blunk and former Utah assistant coach Joe Craves will guide fans throughout the game on Pac-12 Networks.
Utah will then open its season on Monday, Nov. 7, against Long Island with a 9 p.m. (MT) tip-off on Pac-12 Networks. Blunk will have the call while Mary Murphy serves as the in-game analyst between the Utes and Sharks.
SEASON TICKETS
Fans can purchase season tickets for the 2022-23 season now by calling the Utah Ticket Office at 801-581-8849 or purchase online. Fans with questions regarding season tickets that would like to have a ticketing representative call them can do so by filling out a form online.
For the latest news and information on the Runnin' Utes men's basketball program, fans can stay connected online at www.UtahUtes.com and on social media by following @UtahMBB on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
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